Porcelain lid in shadowbox

 

This is a porcelain lid that is very special to the client. The box broke, but she wanted to preserve the lid. I used medium-dark blue silk behind the lid as well as up the insides of the frame to hold the Museum glass away from the delicate flowers. Because at our shop we only attach art that can later be removed, mounting the lid was a bit tricky. What I ended up doing was making a foam board hexagon that fit very tightly into the back of the lid. Because it was visible, I covered the armature with the same blue silk. The armature was glued to the backing and with a pretty good tug, the lid can be pulled off the hexagon.

The client wanted a fancy frame that complemented the decorations on the lid, and it had to be deep enough to accommodate the glass, the lid, and the backing. It was very successful and the customer loved it. The price for the framing was around $200.

VICTORIAN CARD

THIS WAS A SWEET VICTORIAN GREETING CARD THAT HAD BELONGED TO OUR CLIENT'S GRANDMOTHER. WE NEEDED A DEEP ENOUGH FRAME SO THE SLIK RIBBONS WOULDN'T BE SMASHED AND IT HAD TO HAVE A DESIGN THAT RELATED BOTH IN PERIOD AND SCALE TO THE CARD. THIS LITTLE SILVER FRAME WAS PERFECT, EXCEPT FOR THE COLOR. I CHANGED THE FINISH TO COMPLEMENT THE COLOR AND AGE OF THE CARD. THE BACKGROUND IS A LIGHTER BLUE SILK AND I USED MUSEUM GLASS TO ENHANCE THE VIEWING OF THE DELICATE EMBOSSING AROUND THE EDGES OF THE CARD. THE BLUE RIBBONS WERE CREASED AND FLATTENED, SO I CAREFULLY UNTIED THEM, PRESSED THEM GENTLY WITH AN IRON AND PRESSCLOTH AND THEN JUST AS CAREFULLY RE-TIED THEM.

A CLOSE-UP OF BEFORE AND AFTER OF THE FRAME FINISH.

Antique family heirloom

These are the most beautiful antique hand painted silk and kid leather braces (or suspenders). Delicate, spidery writing on the back of the silk necessitated the use of a mirror to reflect the script.

I sewed the braces onto a support of fine, buttery Irish linen and fashioned a simple frame, custom painted to match the rich whites of the silk then waxed and polished to a rich sheen.